Buried for 50 years in a Butternut, white walnut, tree, I just had to help this old spirit out. He sat around in a discarded slab of wood in my shop for years until one day he spoke to me the way spirits speak to artists. I carefully cut off the excess wood holding him in place. Once out, I helped him gain his color back with some oil and wax.

Taken from a children's book about a little white girl and a black girl that became friends meeting on a neutral fence between the two families, the image was striking. It was a challenge for me to carve the braided hair.

Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon, also know as Minnie Pearl, was from my hometown of Centerville, TN. Minnie's colorful character was derived from the personalities of some of our "country people." 'Plelia's character was equally interesting, but she was a very well-educated and cultured person who left an amazing mark on comedy, country music, the Grand Ole Opry, and the hometown people who knew her well.